Medical Device Link.

Originally Published PMPN July 2003

Interview

Industry, academia, and government collaborate on a center devoted exclusively to the latest packaging technologies.

José E. Correa, Director, CAPTech

You may already know that Puerto Rico is the birthplace of the piña colada. But did you know that 16 of the 20 top-selling pharmaceuticals are manufactured on the island? Or that Puerto Rico exports more pharmaceuticals to foreign countries than any U.S. state? 

With such a high concentration of pharmaceutical companies setting up operations in Puerto Rico, it seems fitting that the island would cater to this industry with the development of a center for advanced packaging technologies—or CAPTech, as it is commonly referred to.

Scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2004, this 22,000-sq-ft facility is the result of an initiative developed by INDUNIV (the Industry/University Research Consortium), the Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, and the University of Puerto Rico–Mayagüez. José E. Correa, the director of CAPTech, spoke with managing editor Kassandra Kania about the Center’s services and how these will benefit industry. 

What is your background, and how did you become involved in CAPTech?

Correa: I have a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering and a master’s degree in business administration. In 1987, I started working for DuPont Diagnostics and eventually DuPont Pharmaceuticals. I participated in the start-up of new operations and led product transfers from Taiwan ROC to PR and from PR to Delaware. When Bristol- Myers Squibb bought DuPont Pharmaceuticals, I was the packaging manager for an oral solids dosage operation. 

After 15 years in the pharmaceutical business, I became interested in project management and consulting. During this time, I was presented with the opportunity to lead the CAPTech initiative. INDUNIV needed someone with an administration background, project management skills, and technical experience in the industry. The goal was to create a business plan and request funding from the government.

How will CAPTech support the education of packaging professionals?

Correa: The Center is partnering with the two major engineering academic institutions in Puerto Rico. It has also worked in alliance with Michigan State University to start programs in Puerto Rico conducive to packaging engineering degrees. Currently, Puerto Rico does not offer a full packaging engineering degree. CAPTech will help fund the universities to start these programs. A PhD in packaging engineering will be leading these academic efforts at the Center.

We are not only looking at educating packaging engineers but managers as well. Right now, the Polytechnic University of PR, the largest private university producing Hispanic engineers, is offering two master’s degrees; one of them in manufacturing engineering and one in manufacturing competitiveness. When the CAPTech effort started in 1998, there were around 40 students enrolled in these programs. Today there are 225, and the number continues to grow. 

CAPTech will also serve as a testing lab for the universities where students can access our labs to work on their projects. 

What other educational programs is CAPTech involved in?

Correa: Once or twice a year, we conduct a technology exchange series. In October 2002, we cosponsored one with Lansmont Corp. called “Protective Packaging and Product Reliability From the Field to the Lab.” This year, CAPTech coordinated the packaging track for INDUNIV’s Forum for Innovation, which is an event for technical professionals and key decision makers from the pharmaceutical, medical device, and biotechnology industries. Topics included changeover practices, how to qualify packages, integrity testing, blister packaging, unit-dose bar coding, and anticounterfeiting and tamper-evidence features for primary and secondary packages. We also had a short course on ISTA projects.

What other services will CAPTech offer?

Correa: We will provide package testing services to the pharmaceutical, medical devices, and biotechnology industries. One section of our building will house the conference center with video capabilities and distance learning. Another section will have a series of labs with certified instrumentation to conduct testing. 

We will focus on serving three main testing areas: new product development, product transfer, and existing-product support. In terms of new product development, we’re looking at bringing part of this market to Puerto Rico because currently most of this is done in the United States. By offering package-testing services here, companies can now do a portion of their R&D in Puerto Rico. For product transfer and existing-product support, packaging tests will be generated in Puerto Rico, making it easier for these companies because they do not have to send their product to the United States for testing. That’s an advantage in terms of cost and logistics. If you’re validating a blister packaging line, for example, and you need to conduct a permeability test, you need to take those samples, pack them, and send them to a lab in the continental United States to be tested. That exposes the sample to a lot of hassles in shipping, and sometimes you don’t get the accurate reading you would get if you tested it locally.

Additional services that CAPTech will offer are design and development and line integration services. Part of our building will have design and development modules. We will be able to offer this on a lease basis—not only the space but everything else that’s necessary to run a packaging line. In addition, we’re going to offer professional services, such as mechanics and packaging engineers, so that companies can integrate their lines at our facilities. 

Suppliers can bring lines to the lab, assemble them, perform factory acceptance tests, or make modifications, and when ready, send them to the customer. The advantage to the customer is that its operators and mechanics can receive hands-on training on the machine while it’s at CAPTech. The advantage to the supplier is that it can show the equipment to other potential customers.

For more information about becoming a CAPTech partner, contact José E. Correa at 787/772-4604 or jcorrea@pridco.com. 

Copyright ©2003 Pharmaceutical & Medical Packaging News